This invention relates to an improved method and apparatus for processing poultry gizzards, and more particularly relates to an improved gizzard harvester and method of operation therefor which automatically processes poultry gizzards on a high-speed, mass production basis.
The processing of poultry gizzards into condition for use and consumption requires that the gizzards be opened and cleaned; the contaminating contents removed; the stomach and gut or intestines trimmed off the gizzard; and the interior lining or membrane skinned off and discarded. These steps are necessary because the processed gizzards must pass rigorous quality and hygiene standards imposed by the industry and by governmental agencies and regulations. If any of the above treatments are not thoroughly and properly completed, the resulting product may be of low quality, or may be contaminated so as to fail inspection. There is thus a constant search for improvements in the method and apparatus for processing gizzards which would meet the rigorous quality and hygiene standards applicable in this field.
Other requirements for harvesting gizzards are that the activity must be conducted efficiently and economically on a high-speed, mass production basis, with a minimum of hand labor. The high speeds are necessary so that the harvester apparatus and process handles gizzards at a speed which is compatible with the increasingly higher line speeds utilized in modern poultry processing plants. For example, poultry processing plant line speeds have increased in recent times from approximately 50 units per minute to 70 to 75 units per minute. The expectation is that line speeds will be raised even higher in the future, because of the pressures of economics and the need for increased efficiency.
To perform these gizzard processing functions at such high-speed levels, the functions of the machine and process must be integrated for a smooth and continuous operation, and the utilization of hand labor must be minimized. Moreover, whatever manual labor that is needed should be unskilled labor. In addition, the processing apparatus should be compact in design, to operate within a minimum space within a poultry processing plant. Likewise, all of the needed processing steps should be performed with a minimum number of machines. The process and apparatus should also minimize the gizzard rejects and thereby increase the yield from the processing operation.
Prior gizzard harvesting apparatus and processes which have attempted to meet the foregoing criteria, have met with varying degrees of success. The present invention meets these criteria by providing an improved apparatus and process which handles poultry gizzards on a mass production basis with a minimum of unskilled hand labor, and with a compact design which permits the processing to be accomplished at substantially high line speeds. For example, the present invention minimizes hand labor requirements by providing an apparatus and process which operate on gizzards having the stomachs and intestines attached. Thus, the hand labor needed to cut off the stomach and/or the intestines from the gizzard, before processing with some previous machines, has been eliminated.
In addition, the invention eliminates the criticality of the condition in which the gizzards are introduced into the harvester. In accordance with this invention, the gizzards having the stomach and intestines attached can be pulled from the poultry by unskilled labor, and the gizzard and the attached portions can be randomly fed into the harvesting machine. The processing operation is thereby initiated without the need to be concerned with the initial orientation of the gizzards. Rather, the randomly fed gizzards will be arranged automatically into the desired predetermined orientation by the operation of the harvester.
Many of the features and advantages of the present invention accrue because complete and accurate control of the gizzards is established at all stages of the operation. At the initial stages of operation of the harvester, the control of the gizzards is accomplished by utilizing the stomach and intestines attached to the gizzards. Once such initial control of the gizzards is obtained, and the gizzards are oriented into a desired position, the attached stomach and intestines are removed, and the gizzards are controlled by other means throughout the remaining operations of the harvester. The subsequent operations function to completely open and clean the gizzard; to trim the tender lining from each gizzard which remains after the stomach and intestines have been sheared; and to peel the interior membrane or lining from each gizzard.
Briefly described, the advantages and features of the present invention are provided by a poultry gizzard harvesting apparatus which is adapted to process gizzards having portions including the stomach and the intestines attached. The use of expensive hand labor is minimized because the gizzards can be removed directly from the poultry and dropped into the machine in a random arrangement. The hand trimming of stomachs and/or intestines, and the attendant costs and problems, are thereby eliminated. The harvester receives a plurality of the gizzards and feeds the gizzards into a feeding and aligning station. This feeding and aligning station includes feed roll means for engaging the stomach and the intestines to apply an initial orienting force to each gizzard. The force of the feed roll means arranges each gizzard in an initial orientation, and also transports the gizzard laterally along a predetermined path through the harvester.
After the randomly-fed gizzards are initially oriented by the feed roll means, the gizzards are directed to orienting means adjacent the feed rolls means. The orienting means is adapted to engage each gizzard sequentially, and to apply a second orienting force directly to each gizzard while the feed roll means maintains the first orienting force applied through the stomach and intestines. In accordance with this invention, the first orienting force applied by the feed roll means, and the second orienting force applied by the orienting means, cooperate to arrange each gizzard into a preselected position for further processing.
The harvester pursuant to this invention also includes means for securing each gizzard in the preselected position while the gizzard is conveyed along a predetermined path within the harvester. Once the gizzards are so secured, a shearing station provided by the harvester then functions to simultaneously remove the attached stomach and intestines from each gizzard. The removal of the stomach and intestines occurs automatically after the gizzard is secured in this preselected position. The shearing station removes the stomach and intestines by shearing closely to the body of the gizzard, to minimize the residual tender lining of the stomach and intestines remaining on the gizzard. After the stomach and intestines are removed, the harvester conveys the gizzard in its preselected position to a slitting station, where slitting means such as a saw opens each gizzard. Next, spreader means positioned adjacent the path of travel of the gizzard open each slit gizzard to expose the interior lining or membrane and the contents of the gizzard. Flushing means then flush out the interior of the opened gizzard, to remove the contaminants. Thereafter, the harvester provides shearing means engagable with the edge of each gizzard to remove the residual tender lining to which the stomach and intestines had been attached. Such a trimming of the tender lining increases the yield of the machine by eliminating the tender lining as a source of contamination. Finally, the harvester provides peeler means to engage with and peel the interior membrane or lining from each gizzard. The gizzard is then prepared for further processing or consumption.